Kate Baldwin singing “Spring Fever” from Harold Arlen, Ira Gershwin, and Yip Harburg’s Life Begins at 8:40
Just thought I’d share in celebration of things getting warmer!
Patty and Emily hold auditions for the role of Patrick’s Mother in honor of the 1st anniversary of Newsies. Hilarity ensues.
I TOTALLY HAD THIS IDEA 2 YEARS AGO.
Spoiler alert, Kate Baldwin is the best.
“Til’ Tomorrow” from Fiorello! (Encores! 31-Jan 2013)
music Jerry Bock lyric Sheldon Harnick
performance Kate Baldwin and company
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I always thought this song was a rathe dull pastiche…until Kate Baldwin decided to prove me wrong! And the company singing a capella for the last 30 seconds? Stunning.
This is the song from which my URL hails. Sheldon Harnick’s “The Ballad of the Shape of Things”, taken from Kate Baldwin’s album She Loves Him.
It’s kind of a black-comedy song so be warned that it mentions, er, violent death. Not in graphic terms but it is there.
This song—for which Harnick wrote music and lyric—was written at the request of an emerging Charlotte Rae, who used it in her cabaret act. She was to sing it in one of Leonard Sillman’s New Faces reviews on Broadway, but there was a delay in the production and Rae was cast in Three Wishes for Jamie by the time Sillman was ready for what became New Faces of 1952, and the song followed suit. As consolation, Sillman asked Harnick to write a new song for comedian Alice Ghostley—“Boston Beguine”—which was one of the highlights of the evening and Harnick’s proverbial ‘big break’. The song ultimately made it into The Littlest Review off Broadway in 1956.
“It’s Amazing The Things That Float” from THE FLOOD
music and lyrics by Peter Mills
performed by Kate Baldwin
Peter Mills has basically won every award named after a musical theater writer a musical theater writer can win (Larson, Kleban, etc.). I personally think this is one of the best things he’s written, and Baldwin does a fine job. As far as context goes—consider the titles of song and show and think literally. Trust me, the lyric (Mills really is practically peerless in this field, emerging and emerged writers combined) is graceful and provoking. Musically, it’s as if Mother from RAGTIME were in LAST 5 YEARS, only it’s not about a man!
Kate Baldwin, “The Miller’s Son”, Wall to Wall Sondheim.
I love this song both for its flirtatiousness and its overall message: grab life by the horns! Enjoy things when you’re in a position to do so!
I think a little hedonism is far from a bad thing, and sometimes I wish I were more like Petra (the character who sings this in A Little Night Music). Kate Baldwin, being Kate Baldwin, sings the song fabulously.
I’m on a rampage today. Deal with it-this is the finest performance of “The Miller’s Son” I’ve ever heard.
So thinking about IRON CURTAIN (as per my previous post) led me to another Pete Mills show, THE FLOOD, for which he wrote music and lyrics. This link will take you to THE FLOOD’s page on Mills’ website where you can hear 3 priceless tracks: “Highway Miles” performed by Gavin Creel, “It’s Amazing the Things that Float” performed by Kate Baldwin (which very well may be the most beautiful thing you hear today, absolutely flawless) and “Runways” performed by Creel and Jen Blood. I cannot impart upon you how imperative it is you listen to these tracks.
